The WA Government has announced that all general retail shops (i.e. large shops) in the Perth metropolitan area will, from Sunday 26 August 2012, be able to open on Sundays between 11am and 5pm.
All general retail shops will also be able to open (also from 11am to 5pm) on all public holidays, except Good Friday, Christmas Day and Anzac Day. The Government has emphasised that a retailer‟s decision to open on these days is voluntary and this is protected by section 12C of the Commercial Tenancy (Retail Shops) Agreements Act 1985.
This provides that a provision in a retail shop lease that requires a tenant to open at any particular hour is void.Section 12 of the Act also provides that if a retailer opens outside “standard trading hours”, which do not include Sundays or public holidays, the retailer can be charged its relevant proportion of operating expenses (outgoings) for those additional hours but if retailers do not open outside standard trading hours, they are not liable for operating expenses.
